The Only Ultimate Alpha in the Universe - Chapter 29

Since Xiao Sa ruthlessly whipped Carman and his group into shape, the atmosphere of Mecha Piloting Class A had undergone a complete reversal.

Carman no longer dared to idle, arrive late, or leave early. Every day, he diligently attended lectures, finished his homework, and completed his training tasks. He didn’t even dare to speak of Xiao Sa’s threats, it was far too humiliating. He had hoped Xiao Sa would lose interest in a few days, but Xiao Sa was a man of his word and watched them like a hawk.

Adhering to the principle that “one shouldn’t suffer alone,” Carman, the biggest troublemaker in Class A used his influence to make sure everyone else shared his nightmare. Since he started arriving on time, he refused to let anyone be later than him. He even stationed two bodyguards at the door to act as “Gate Gods,” monitoring attendance.

The professors were stunned by this sudden “proactive” behavior. Was this still the class of “gilding” noble playboys they remembered?

One afternoon, Carman arrived at the Mecha Training Ground as usual, heading for the VIP training room. To his annoyance, he found it occupied. Byer informed him that because it was a joint training day for Classes B and C, the regular grounds were full, so they had simply taken over the A-class VIP room.

“They said since we never use it and just hire ghost-pilots for our tasks, they might as well make use of the waste,” Byer whispered.

Carman’s blood boiled. He had been feeling increasingly good about his training lately, only to have cold water thrown in his face by people who usually wouldn’t dare provoke him. He signaled his bodyguards to clear the room, but they returned embarrassed, saying the students inside refused to leave.

Several Class B students walked out. One of them, Joan Lane, the eldest son of the Lane family greeted Carman with a smirk. “Sorry, the other rooms are full. We need this for a bit. We’ll find someone to finish your little ‘daily tasks’ for you later. Go play somewhere else, Second Young Master; mechas flying around isn’t a place for delicate young lords. I already called your older brother to apologize, and he said you’d understand.”

Carman’s face darkened. He hated his older brother more than anyone. In the shadow of the perfect heir, he was just a disposable playboy. But today, he was furious. Was he not even allowed to try and be better?

“What if I don’t want to leave?” Carman growled.

Joan Lane’s smile widened mockingly. “Since you’re so interested today, why don’t you come in and spar with us?”

Carman clenched his fists. With everyone watching, he couldn’t back down. As a Double-A rank, retreating before someone of a lower rank would make him a laughingstock. The news spread like wildfire: The notorious playboy Carman Lott is going to duel Joan Lane!

Xiao Sa wandered into the training ground sipping a carton of coconut milk, listening to the gossip. By the time he reached the VIP room, the battle was in full swing.

Carman’s red mecha was being utterly suppressed by Joan’s blue mecha. Although Carman had a higher mental rank, his practical skills were abysmal compared to Joan, a top-ten ranked student.

BOOM! The red mecha was blasted into the ground. Muffled laughter broke out among the B and C class spectators.

“What’s the point of a high rank if you’re incompetent? Just a waste of good genes.” “I guess the only use for them is to marry and produce better heirs.”

Xiao Sa leaned against the doorframe, twirling his mental needle. His brow furrowed at the comments. He touched his ear-stud. “Hino, link me to Carman.”

【No problem.】

Inside the cockpit, Carman was drenched in sweat, gasping for air as he stared at the blue mecha hovering above him. Just as he was about to surrender, Xiao Sa’s voice rang in his comms.

“Carman, listen. Do exactly as I say.”

“Xiao Sa? How are you on my channel? You’re a C-rank beginner, how can you help me win?”

“Release your spiritual body and send it to me.”

Carman had no choice. He released the Red Hawk, which flew to Xiao Sa’s shoulder. Xiao Sa patted its head, and his S-rank mental energy instantly flooded out, invading the hawk’s mental sea. Carman gasped as he felt his spiritual body snatched from his control, but he forced himself to endure the discomfort.

“I’ve observed him,” Xiao Sa’s voice was calm and chillingly precise in Carman’s mind. “The blue mecha’s weakness is his left hand. He’s good at offense but terrible at defense. He relies on energy cannons and is bad at accelerating. Get close, and he’ll panic. That’s your chance.”

Carman didn’t understand how Xiao Sa had analyzed the opponent so quickly, but as he launched the mecha off the ground, he felt a massive surge of mental power. His senses expanded—Joan’s movements, previously fast, now looked sluggish.

“Xiao Sa?” Carman’s pupils dilated.

“Trust me,” Xiao Sa said simply.

Carman focused entirely on one goal: punching that blue mecha. Following Xiao Sa’s directions, he launched a fierce assault on Joan’s left side. His efficiency nearly doubled. Joan was caught off guard; the “lazy dog” Carman had suddenly turned into a rabid wolf.

The red mecha’s short-range ion cannons hammered Joan’s left joints. Joan lost his balance. He was used to keeping a safe distance and sniping, but now he was being smothered.

ALARM! Joan’s left-side operating system failed. Before he could react, the red mecha leaped into the air, switched to mid-range laser cannons, and rained fire down on him, slamming him into the floor.

In a series of unfortunate events for Joan, his over-reliance on high-energy particle cannons proved to be his undoing—he simply ran out of power.

Under the shocked gazes of the gathered students, Carman launched a stunning counterattack. He pinned Joan to the ground, grinding him into the floor until the defeated pilot was forced to surrender amidst the blaring alarms of a depleted energy core.

The students from Classes B and C were incredulous, but none were more shell-shocked than Carman’s own Class A peers. They watched him, slack-jawed, as he stood triumphant in the center of the arena.

After a moment of dead silence, Byer—Carman’s closest friend—was the first to snap out of it. He let out a loud whistle and began to clap enthusiastically. “Beautifully done, Carman!”

Soon, the rest of Class A joined in with genuine cheers. In an instant, the training room erupted into a cacophony of applause and shouting.

“So Carman actually has some moves after all. A Double-A rank really is something else.” “I thought he skipped the monthly trials because he was lazy, but maybe it’s just because most people aren’t worth his time.”

Still, some refused to believe it. “Carman’s mecha must have been modified! The Lott family’s biggest industry is mecha R&D, isn’t it? Joan just lost to the machine, not the pilot.”

Regardless, most students were practical. In this world, the strong earned respect, and Carman had just put on a hell of a show.

Amidst the whistling and applause, Carman opened his cockpit and jumped out. He looked up at the bright ceiling lights, experiencing for the first time the heat of a spotlight that felt earned. He looked at the blue mecha lying in a heap, its left shoulder twisted and smoking.

Joan crawled out of his cockpit, covered in dust. His expression was a messy cocktail of shock, disbelief, and humiliation. In Carman’s memory, this guy was always arrogant, second only to Carman’s own older brother. Seeing him this disheveled was a first.

A surge of intense satisfaction flooded Carman’s chest. Is this what victory tastes like?

But the high receded as quickly as it had come. As Byer and the others swarmed him, chattering in his ear, Carman didn’t listen. His eyes searched the crowd for Xiao Sa.

He found him leaning against the doorframe, standing quietly outside the noise. Xiao Sa was casually tossing an empty juice carton into the air, his expression calm as if the result was a foregone conclusion. He gave Carman a slight nod and turned to walk out.

In that massive training hall, only Carman knew the truth: the applause didn’t belong to him. It belonged to the man walking away.

The Secret Training Pact

Carman quickly caught up to Xiao Sa, who was already heading toward his silver mecha to begin his daily routine, acting as if nothing had happened. Once they were away from the crowd, Carman intercepted him.

“How did you do it? Why did you help me?” Carman asked in a hushed, urgent tone.

Xiao Sa frowned slightly. “I already told you my goal. I wasn’t helping you; I was helping myself. As for how I did it… I have my ways.”

Xiao Sa knew that if Class A had lost today, they would never have regained the confidence to face next month’s trial. He had to drag these playboys across the finish line, even if it meant doing the heavy lifting himself.

“Besides,” Xiao Sa added, “you’d best keep this quiet. You wouldn’t want people to know it was a two-on-one fight, would you?”

“I know,” Carman whispered, his gaze complicated. He hesitated, then asked, “Do you really think we can win next month? You might win your matches, but the rest of us…”

He hated admitting they were dead weight. For the first time, racing hover-cars and drinking at clubs seemed boring compared to the thrill of a mecha duel.

Xiao Sa rubbed his chin. “Well, you are quite terrible. It’s hard to carry the whole team solo.”

Carman nearly choked. Couldn’t you at least be a little polite? “Look, if it gets too hard, don’t worry. I’ll cover for you. No one will dare bully you from now on.”

Xiao Sa gave him a deadpan look. “Do I look like I need your protection?”

Carman went silent. Between Xiao Sa’s hidden strength and his background as the Admiral’s partner, Carman realized he was the one being “protected.”

“I thought it was strange,” a cold voice interrupted. “How could someone like him beat Joan? You were helping him from the shadows, weren’t you?”

They turned to see Feng Yu approaching with his woodpecker. Carman’s face darkened. “What’s it to you? Who said you could eavesdrop?”

“I’m here every day at this time to train with Xiao Sa,” Feng Yu replied flatly. “I wasn’t eavesdropping.”

Carman’s eyes darted between them. “What? You two train together every day?”

Xiao Sa nodded. “Yes.”

Feng Yu was an excellent tutor. Despite his sharp tongue, he was incredibly dedicated. He had even stayed up late to write a customized manual for Xiao Sa. Under his guidance, Xiao Sa’s progress had been meteoric.

Feng Yu looked at Xiao Sa with confusion. He didn’t understand why Xiao Sa would associate with someone like Carman, especially after beating them up. He had grown to respect Xiao Sa’s hard work and genius, even forgetting his initial resentment toward Xiao Sa’s “privileged” entry into the school.

“If you just want the field internship,” Feng Yu said to Xiao Sa, “why not ask Admiral Landis to transfer you to our class? I can explain the situation to the professors for you. You don’t need to stay with these anchors.”

Carman bristled immediately. “He’s in our class! Who are you to tell him where to go?” He felt a sudden, sharp fear that Xiao Sa would abandon them just as they were starting to care.

“You’re just dragging him down!” Feng Yu shot back. “Xiao Sa has a better future elsewhere. Stopping him is selfish!”

Carman turned red, unable to find a comeback. “I’m a Double-A! I have more resources than you’ll ever have!”

“And yet,” Feng Yu countered, “you just had to rely on Xiao Sa to win a fight.”

As the two glared at each other, Xiao Sa jumped out of his cockpit. He looked at Feng Yu and blinked. “You really want to help me?”

“Of course,” Feng Yu said. The inhibitors Xiao Sa gave him had worked wonders on his spiritual body; he felt he owed him far more than just a few lessons.

Xiao Sa’s gaze drifted between the two before he spoke slowly. “Well, it is hard to raise the class average by myself. But if you join in, the success rate goes up significantly.”

“Wait, what?” both boys blurted out simultaneously.

“I want you to help me whip these guys into shape,” Xiao Sa said calmly. “Starting today, we’ll all train together every afternoon.”

Before they could protest, Xiao Sa’s light-brain chimed. He pulled up a message:

School’s almost out, right? I’m coming to pick you up. Let’s go out for dinner tonight.

Xiao Sa whistled. It was rare for a workaholic like Landis to initiate a date. He turned to leave as the two boys asked in unison: “Where are you going?”

Xiao Sa didn’t look back. He just raised a hand and waved. “On a date.”

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